“How good to see you, Grim. You’ve been gone quite a while.”

  ? Veyra dropped from the rooftop without a sound, landing cat-like on the cobbled street, her eyes continuing to glow in the dim lighting. The delivery of her last statement let him know that she’d not been fooled by the act he and Eva had put on, and her menacing glare, coupled with the axe she held tightly in one hand, told him that she was going to get the answers she sought.

  ? “Uh, hey, Captain,” he said, trying to seem more casual than he felt. He just hoped the fear at her switch didn’t show on his face. “Good evening.”

  ? “Indeed it is,” she replied, a slow smile curling across her face. Why did her teeth look so much like fangs just then? “Several evenings, if I’m not quite mistaken. I may not have been able to peer into that girl’s private dimension, but I am familiar with time dilation enough to notice a few issues.”

  ? She took two steps forward, her stance light but tense, her eyes flicking in all directions for a half second before focusing on him once again. “Where has our newest recruit gone, then?”

  ? “Back to Evandross,” Grim replied at once. He hadn’t been told by Eva to keep her identity a secret from important people–and Veyra was arguably one of the most important in his life–nor did he see a reason in prolonging his Captain’s suspicions, especially as she looked mere seconds away from lunging. “She turned out to be an emissary of the same dungeon from which I got this bow.”

  ? He tapped the stave of the bow jutting out over his shoulder for emphasis. Veyra froze, her eyes widening slightly as she glanced at it, though they never lost that glow. “Oh. You’re telling the truth.”

  ? “I am,” he said slowly, frowning at her. “But… how could you tell?”

  ? The glow in her eyes subsided, and she offered him another grin, this one free of menace. “Never underestimate a master liar, Grim. You do it long enough, you get good at spotting when others do it as well.”

  ? He didn’t believe that for a second. Well, not entirely. He was sure Veyra was craftier than anyone he’d ever known. But he was just as sure that that particular gift came from her bloodline, and that she had one. Seeing that she wasn’t willing to give up that particular secret for now, he merely folded his arms. “There’s more to it than her being an emissary.”

  ?

  ? Veyra blinked slowly at him, her mouth hanging open. “Fuck, Grim. That silver-haired monster wasn’t lying. You really got some shit weighing on you.”

  ? Grim simply shrugged. One could only suffer so many earth-shattering revelations in a single day before they became numb to such things. “I guess. I’m sure it all has something to do with this ‘Grand Quest’ that Granden mentioned. Not that I’ve heard a single solid lead about that.”

  ? “Well, duh,” she said, idly sliding the half of her ax into a pouch at her belt. It quickly vanished from view, and she rubbed her hands together as if clearing them of dust. “You’re not useful if your secrets get stolen. He’s gotta make sure you’re at least strong enough to be useful.”

  ? “Gee, thanks,” he drawled. “That’s very comforting to hear.”

  ? She snorted at that, and suddenly she was at his side, one arm slung over his shoulder. It was so reminiscent of their first meeting that he immediately shied away at the contact, but she again refused to let him slip away that easily. “When are you going to stop doing that?”

  ? “As soon as you’re strong enough to stop me,” she cooed, pinching his ear with the hand attached to the cursed arm. “You sure it’s not too late to get you to play with me? Orren and I would just love some fresh blood in our games.”

  ? Knowing that he couldn’t know if she meant that literally or not, Grim used Shadow Step to end up several feet away from her, scowling and rubbing his ear. “No thanks. I’d rather run through the level eight dungeon naked.”

  ? “Well, now, that does sound fun,” she replied, pacing towards him. “But I suppose you’ve got to keep your sights set on more… challenging ambitions, don’t you?”

  ? “This Grand Quest business? I can’t exactly work towards a goal if I don’t know where it lies.”?

  ? “I was thinking more about the adorable little clerk we have,” Veyra was at his side again, and he hadn’t seen how she got there. Thankfully, she resorted to a shoulder bump instead of imprisoning her. “You should have seen how flustered she was after your first date. Gushed so much that the other clerks were tempted to jump into a well.”

  ? Grim rolled his eyes, even if a flush did creep up his neck at the thought. He wasn’t going to let Veyra get to him that easily. “Nice try, but that wasn’t a date. She was just giving me a tour of the town.”

  ? “That might have been what she thought it was,” Veyra purred, waggling her eyebrows at him. “But I saw how you stumbled over that invitation. Lucky for you, though. That girl’s got a stronger appetite than most monsters. If you’d really intended to date her that early on, your poor little coin purse would have imploded.”

  ? She shoulder bumped him again, or at least she tried to, but Grim stopped in his tracks, causing her to stumble slightly. That damn teasing woman, she turned it to her advantage. “See? You‘ve got nothing to worry about if you can even get me to fall for you!”

  ? He rolled his eyes yet again. “I told you what I was up to. Surely that’s enough for me to go through in a single night.”

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  ? “Don’t tell me you find me annoying,” she said, assuming a pout. It almost looked convincing. That sort of ploy might have actually worked on him before he’d known her. “Am I too bold for you, then? Do you prefer the stern, no-nonsense clerk Maven, then?”

  ? “Obviously,” he said flatly, and felt a flare of pride as she froze in place, her mouth falling open in surprise at his forthrightness.

  ? “Oh, that was good,” she said, instantly back to her usual predatory smirk. “You might just stand a chance after all. Little Maven doesn’t waste her time with anything but the full effort. You’ve certainly got the looks, but those are nothing without ambition.”

  ? He wasn’t sure how Veyra could have known that he’d been building up the motivation to ask Maven on a proper date lately, but he also wasn’t sure that her teasing was baseless. She did have… methods of acquiring information that nobody wanted her to have. Deciding he didn’t want to discuss the potential of a dating life with his Captain, he abruptly changed the subject.

  ? “So, you were waiting there for us to come out because you thought we were a threat?”

  ? “Hm? No, it’s because I sensed your essence drop drastically. I was actually worried that you were dying, and rushed over. That’s when I saw the scene frozen and you gone, and got curious. I tried for quite a while to break into that little dimension that girl made, but had to give up after about an hour. Then I just waited around to see what would happen.”

  ? Nice to know even she would have been powerless to save him if Eva had failed to clear that dungeon properly. Yet again, he internally cursed his ancestor for her recklessness. Who risked a fight against a dungeon twice their level like that? The power to steal essence aside, she could have killed him with that stunt. At the thought of his bloodline–and the knowledge that it could be expanded further yet–he turned to his Captain, who was casually strolling beside him, her hands clasped behind her back.

  ? “What does your bloodline do, Captain? Has it grown since you were lower level?”

  ? “That’s a secret,” she said smugly. “You’re lucky you even found out it existed. But yes, it has grown since then.”

  ? “Surely there are plenty of people who know what it does,” Grim countered. “Orren and the other leaders?”

  ? “Actually, Orren is the only one in the guild who knows its details,” she replied with a grin. “I had to tell him, because we fight together. Oh, and Sylas knows as well.”

  ? It took him a few seconds to recognize the name Sylas. Eventually, he remembered the Guildmaster of Marshguard and the current head of the Council of Guilds. “Makes sense that he’d know. He is in charge of the city.”

  ? “Nah, he found out by accident when we were delving together. Plenty of people have seen me use it, but nobody’s figured it out besides him.”

  ? So it was something that could be understood by watching, Grim thought, filing the information away for future reference. Veyra glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes, letting him know that she knew what he was thinking, but made no comment. He returned them to his original planned trajectory. “Eva had powers I didn’t know were possible. She said they were a result of her bloodline, so they’re probably in my future. I just don’t know when.”

  ? Veyra clasped her hands above her head, stretching luxuriously. Several men–and even a few women–watched her lithe body as they passed, momentarily forgetting their conversations. “Well, that’s how it goes with bloodlines. If you had access to all their powers right from the start, you’d probably explode. That’s too much power for puny level ones to handle.”

  ? He shrugged again, left with no choice but to accept her word on the matter. But he did make a mental note to visit Maxwell again. He was the best expert on bloodlines he could think of, and he could probably be trusted to help him understand his own.

  ? “Well, no point in pondering heavy shit on a beautiful evening like this,” she said. Quick as a flash, she had him trapped in an arm again. She kept her grip light, so he didn’t feel the need to use Shadow Dash to escape suffocation. They strolled around a corner, and the guild hall came into view once more. “How about I give you a little help, since you were so honest with me today? We’ll call it a favor. I’d love to see my cute little junior succeed in winning over his crush.”

  ? He tried to come to a halt, to tell her that he didn’t need help. But she’d continued moving forward, resulting in him being nearly dragged as she forced him to keep pace. “Fine. What is your help?”

  ? “Tell little Maven that you’d like to take her to the bookstore,” she said. “And when you get there, buy a specific book. It’s one she’s been looking for for nearly three months now, but I’ve been hiding every copy from her. It’s my little piece of fun, and she knows I do it. But since I’m in such a good mood, I’ll let you get a copy. I’m sure that’ll get her attention.”

  ? She whispered into his ear, sending a shiver down his spine, but he heard every word and grinned. He didn’t know the book, but it did sound exactly like the kind of thing that Maven would be interested in. “Huh. That’s actually a good idea.”

  ? “You sound surprised,” she said, assuming a pout once more. “I am more than just my good looks, you know.”

  ? She paused, as if waiting for him to confirm her good looks, but he gave no such satisfaction. Clicking her tongue in mock annoyance, she finally released him as they crossed into the mess hall. “Well, don’t say I never did anything for you. Now, go and make me proud, little Grim! Woo that cold little bookworm!”

  ? Cackling at her joke, she strolled away towards the table where Orren sat, dramatically swooning into his arms, one hand held over her forehead as if she’d fainted. Orren smirked and said something. At Veyra’s reply, he looked up at Grim, and the smirk broadened, then was directed to the left. Following his Guildmaster’s gaze, he saw Maven sitting at a table alone, her attention split between two books and a bowl of stew. Even as she ate and read together, she continued to make notes on a spare piece of paper, completely oblivious to the chaos of the mess hall.

  ? “Right,” he told himself, taking a deep breath. “No point in dragging it out. Can’t let Veyra think I’m too shy or something stupid.”

  ? Brushing right past Garf, who attempted to pull him down onto a seat, Grim wove through the cluster of tables and, ignoring those few who called out to him, his entire being focused on a single act.

  ? “Hey, Maven,” he said, speaking as soon as he sat down. She gave a small jump at the sound of her name, then peered owlishly up at him, seeming surprised to find herself surrounded by other people. “You free tomorrow?”

  ? She opened her mouth to reply, then hesitated. Apparently unable to come up with a reply, she closed it again, and, to his surprise, a tinge of pink appeared in her cheeks. He was amazed at the reaction. Had Veyra not been teasing about her reaction to the not-date? She was surely loving this, he thought, gritting his teeth.

  ? “Are you sure you know what you’re asking for this time?” She asked when she’d finally mustered enough mental energy to give him an answer.

  ? “Yes,” he said firmly, leaning across the table. “Last time was a fuck up on my end, no doubt. But now, I’m doing it right. I’d like to take you on a date tomorrow.”

  ? The pink in her cheeks deepened, and he took a steady breath, hoping that his own face wasn’t red. Nothing was gained by waiting for luck, he thought. You only won if you struck first.

  ? “Oh. Ah. Uh…”

  ? More than a few people were turning to stare at her now, the conversation at nearby tables stalling as they gauged her reaction. Grim couldn’t blame them. It was a shock, seeing the usually taciturn woman without a witty retort ready. Seeing their reactions seemed to put a bit of focus back in her, and she put a hand to her forehead, letting out a sigh. Grim almost leaned back, sure he’d failed, but then she lowered her hand, and her expression had regained its coolness.

  ? “Sure,” she said, her voice perfectly level. “I think that sounds… nice.”